Worlds Collide
by stubadingdong
Summary: The sixth (6th) in the Movie Night series


TITLE: Worlds Collide  
  
AUTHOR: stub&Joe  
  
DATE: 5-8-03  
  
RATING: PG  
  
DISCLAIMER: Owning nothing kinda humbles a person, doesn't it?  
  
SUMMARY: Another entry in the Movie Night Series; things are heating up.  
  
***  
  
"So what'd you think?" asked Trip, turning eagerly in his seat.  
  
"It is unlikely such radically different children would bond to the degree that they did in a single day," replied T'Pol.  
  
Trip sighed. "I think you missed the point, T'Pol."  
  
She raised an eyebrow at him. "How so, Commander?"  
  
"The point is to prove how alike they really were. Take away the labels and they aren't that different after all. They've all got a little bit of each other inside them."  
  
T'Pol said nothing, seemingly staring blankly at a point over Trip's shoulder. He knew she was doing anything but that. She was processing, replaying the film back in her mind to gain a different perspective.  
  
"It's one of the best coming-of-age movies ever," Trip added with a nod.  
  
"It was rather poignant," admitted the Vulcan. "However, I still maintain that it is unlikely these five students would become that aware of their similarities in a span of eight hours."  
  
Trip sighed again and rolled his eyes. "Haven't I told you about suspendin' your disbelief?" He didn't wait for an answer. "Don't Vulcans come of age? Don't you become aware of who you are at some point in your adolescence?"  
  
"Of course," said T'Pol. She looked at him. "But we do not make movies about it."  
  
He laughed at this. Trip stood up and stretched. "Humans make movies about everything." He looked down at her. "And by 'everything' I mean *everything*. C'mon, let's get some tea," Trip said with a grin.  
  
"Everything?" she echoed. T'Pol rose from her seat and strode out of the room ahead of him.  
  
"You name it, there's a movie about it," he said casually as they made their way to her quarters.  
  
She thought about this for a few moments. "Humans seem particularly fascinated with love and desire. There seems to be some undercurrent of romance in almost every movie you've shown me," T'Pol stated.  
  
"There are different degrees of love and romance. There's brotherly love, family love and the close bonds of friendship. Then you've got the one- sided infatuation, the unrequited kind of love between the two protagonists, the love triangle. And some are just flat out sex romps."  
  
"Sex romps?" She stopped at her door and keyed in the code.  
  
"Well, pornography is probably the better term," Trip said. He wasn't entirely comfortable with where this conversation was headed. He didn't really want to be talking about this with T'Pol. It was bad enough talking about sex with Phlox. He followed her into her quarters.  
  
"Why would anyone want to watch people engaging in sexual activity?" T'Pol asked, genuinely curious.  
  
"Go ask the doc," he muttered. At her eyebrow, Trip continued with a shrug, "I dunno...people need a boost sometimes. Warm up the engines and prime the pumps, so to speak...'specially when they're flyin' solo."  
  
Trip sat on the bench by her meditation table and looked at her with a raised eyebrow of his own. She was thinking again, he could visualize the wheels turning. "There are probably some files in the database if you wanna do some in-depth research, T'Pol." He couldn't help the smile that was spreading across his face.  
  
Her gaze focused on his immediately, snapping her out of whatever thoughts she was having. She blinked several times and said, "Would you like a cup of tea?"  
  
He choked back a chuckle and nodded. "That'd be nice, thanks. So aside from bondin' too quickly, what'd you think of the movie we saw tonight?" Trip wanted to get this conversation back on track. Apparently she did too.  
  
"I believe you've already summed it up, Commander," said T'Pol as she filled the teapot. "People are not always what they seem at first. Those teenagers were quick to judge each other, and each one of them ended up all getting hurt to some degree in the process."  
  
"But they all found a way to communicate," he replied, sitting back. Trip watched her make the tea. Her movements were graceful and precise. "Once they sat down and talked, they found out that maybe they weren't so different after all. They discovered that maybe they could be friends, despite their differin' social circles. And maybe they could learn a little from each other."  
  
T'Pol sat next to Trip, handing him a steaming mug. She had a pensive look on her face. "I find it even more unlikely that those two couples would fall in love at the end."  
  
"Nah, I don't think they actually fell in love," he said quietly. "They were more curious about the 'what if' aspect of it."  
  
"The what if?"  
  
"Yeah, in this case, what if the good girl falls for the bad boy; what if the popular guy falls for the unpopular girl. When two worlds collide, can they survive?"  
  
"Opposites do attract..." T'Pol took a sip of tea.  
  
"I always wanted to know if their relationships worked out," Trip said thoughtfully. "Wonder if their curiosity was worth it."  
  
"Curiosity can be a dangerous thing," replied T'Pol. Her gaze locked with his.  
  
"It can also be a heck of a lot of fun," he said lowly. Trip had a feeling they weren't necessarily discussing the movie anymore, if they ever really were.  
  
"It could have ended with very serious consequences."  
  
"They could ended up fallin' in love. They coulda ended up married."  
  
Again T'Pol raised an eyebrow at him, her eyes firmly trained on his. Trip sat for a moment then reached out a hand, his thumb gently tracing along the arch of her brow. His fingertips grazed her cheek, his tea forgotten.  
  
"You never know til you try," Trip whispered. His gaze flicked from her eyes to her mouth as he leaned forward.  
  
"You're just curious, then?" T'Pol asked softly.  
  
He lifted his eyes back to hers. Trip saw something there he'd never seen in them before: uncertainty. His fingers gently stroked her cheek as he leaned in closer.  
  
"Not *just* curious, T'Pol," he said. He closed his eyes, his lips not quite brushing hers. "I am curious, but there's a lot more to it than that."  
  
T'Pol lifted her own hand up and covered Trip's. "Like what, Commander?"  
  
Trip pulled back just enough to look her in the eye. "There's so much I don't know about you, T'Pol. I wouldn't even know where to start."  
  
"What do you wish to know?" she asked, her fingers exploring his hand.  
  
"Everything," he whispered. "I wanna know everything."  
  
T'Pol closed her eyes for a moment. "Perhaps we should start at the beginning..."  
  
Trip smiled. "I'd like that very much." He sat and just looked at her for a few moments. "I hate to say this, but maybe we can start at the beginning another time," Trip said gently. His thumb stroked her cheek. "I'm sure I could stay up all night talkin' with you, but I've got some reports to finish for the Cap'n that are due in the mornin'."  
  
T'Pol nodded and reached up to return the caress on the Commander's cheek. Trip smiled at her and stood up to leave. He didn't know what to say.  
  
"I guess I'll see you tomorrow then," he said finally as he made his way to the door.  
  
"As you wish, Commander," is the last thing Trip Tucker heard before the doors to the Vuclan's quarters hissed shut behind him.  
  
END  
  
**Note: The movie, in case you haven't guessed, is 'The Breakfast Club' 


End file.
